Dorothy Evelyn Smith
Dorothy Evelyn Smith | |
|---|---|
| Born | Dorothy Evelyn Jones 1893 Derby, England |
| Died | 1969 (age 76) |
| Spouse |
James Norman Smith (m. 1914) |
| Children | 2 |
Dorothy Evelyn Smith (née Jones; 1893–1969) was an English writer. She authored 11 novels from the 1940s to the 1960s, mostly set in the Yorkshire Moors.
Early life and marriage
Dorothy Evelyn Jones was born in Derby to parents from Yorkshire. Her father was a Methodist minister.[1] She attended school in Sheffield and Keighley.[2][3] Her family later moved to London.
By 1911, Smith was enrolled in art school as a part-time student.[4]
In 1914, she married James Norman Smith, also the son of a minister. He worked in banking and served in the First World War.[5] The couple settled in Essex, where they had their two children, a daughter and son.[1]
Career
Smith began contributing to magazines and writing short stories and poetry. She moved into novel writing during World War II, publishing her debut novel O, the Brave Music in 1943, a coming-of-age story set in the Yorkshire Moors before World War I. This was followed by her second novel Huffley Fair. In a review of Huffley Fair, The Bookseller described Smith's writing as having "charm, freshness and humour".[6]
After the war, Smith published her next novels Proud Citadel,[7] My Lamp is Bright[8] and The Lovely Day.[9] Edinburgh Evening News called My Lamp is Bright Smith's best book.[10] As of the publication of her sixth novel Lost Hill in 1952,[11] Smith was described as having "an increasing public on both sides of the Atlantic".[12]
Further in the 1950s came We Went for a Walk,[13] Beyond the Gates,[14] and Miss Plum and Miss Penny, which depicts life in a Yorkshire village in the mid-century.[15] Smith's final two novels The Blue Dress and Brief Flowers were published in 1962 and 1966 respectively.
Later life
At the end of her life, Smith lived on Henry Drive in Leigh-on-Sea. She died in 1969.[16]
Legacy
In 2021, the British Library republished Smith's first novel O, the Brave Music as part of a series on "lost" 20th-century novels by women writers.[17] A Spanish translation was published in 2023 via Trotalibros Editorial.[18]
Bibliography
Novels
- O, the Brave Music (1943)
- Huffley Fair (1944)
- Proud Citadel (1947)
- My Lamp is Bright (1948)
- The Lovely Day (1949)
- Lost Hill (1952)
- He Went for a Walk (1954)
- Beyond the Gates (1956)
- Miss Plum and Miss Penny (1959)
- The Blue Dress (1962)
- Brief Flower (1966)
References
- ^ a b "Dorothy Evelyn Smith". Dean Street Press. Retrieved 1 October 2024.
- ^ "Northern Stories". Todmorden & District News. 16 May 1947. Retrieved 2 January 2025.
- ^ "Novels in brief". Yorkshire Post and Leeds Intelligencer. 27 May 1957. Retrieved 2 January 2025.
- ^ Bushnell, GH (5 March 1957). "Books of the Day". Brechin Advertiser. Retrieved 2 January 2025.
- ^ "Dorothy Evelyn Smith". Trotalibros Editorial (in Spanish). Retrieved 20 November 2024.
- ^ "Huffley Fair, Dorothy Evelyn Smith". The Bookseller. 16 November 1944. Retrieved 20 November 2024.(subscription required)
- ^ "Proud Citadel, Huffley Fair, O, the Brave Music". The Bookseller. 26 April 1947. Retrieved 20 November 2024.(subscription required)
- ^ Quehl, Judith P (31 July 1949). "Cast By Freud; MY LAMP IS BRIGHT. By Dorothy Evelyn Smith". The New York Times. Retrieved 30 November 2024.
- ^ "Distinctive new novels: The Lovely Day by Dorothy Evelyn Smith". The Bookseller. 12 November 1949. Retrieved 20 November 2024.
- ^ "Your Reading Guide: My Lamp is Bright by Dorothy Evelyn Smith". Edinburgh Evening News. 4 December 1948. Retrieved 20 November 2024.(subscription required)
- ^ Lenkeith, Nancy (20 July 1952). "Stopover At Jenny's; LOST HILL By Dorothy Evelyn Smith". The New York Times. Retrieved 20 November 2024.
- ^ "Other recommended novels". Western Mail. 28 May 1952. Retrieved 20 November 2024.(subscription required)
- ^ Parke, Andrea (25 July 1954). "A Child's Loneliness; HE WENT FOR A WALK. By Dorothy Evelyn Smith". The New York Times. Retrieved 20 November 2024.
- ^ Bushnell, G. H. (5 March 1957). "Books of the Day". Brechin Advertiser. Retrieved 20 November 2024.
- ^ Jayne (14 March 2024). "REVIEW: Miss Plum and Miss Penny by Dorothy Evelyn Smith". Dear Author. Retrieved 5 October 2024.
- ^ "Novelist leaves £18,705". Evening News. 15 August 1969. Retrieved 5 October 2024.
- ^ Helmes Fowler, Amy; Askew, Kim (19 April 2022). "83. Dorothy Evelyn Smith — O, the Brave Music with Simon Thomas". Lost Ladies of Lit. Retrieved 5 October 2024.
- ^ Ortega, Marina (11 October 2023). "Oh, qué espléndida música de Dorothy Evelyn Smith". Cargada con Libros (in Spanish). Retrieved 20 November 2024.